Cap City

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ROCK IN A HARD PLACE James ‘Rock’ Haley, who recently turned 71, should be relaxing and enjoying his
golden years — but instead he’s had to return to work to afford
the medicine his wife, Edna, needs for a rare muscle disease. Although the couple’s only income up until now
has been Rock’s monthly Social Security payment, Edna was told that
she doesn’t qualify for the state’s Medicaid program, and her
application for federal Supplemental Security Income assistance has been
rejected more than four times [see R.L. Nave, “A pound of
cure,” March 15, 2007]. The Haleys — and others in similar situations
across the state — saw a glint of hope last year when Gov. Rod Blagojevich unveiled a
plan to insure all Illinoisans, but optimism vanished as lawmakers,
business groups, and, most recently, the courts blocked the proposed
expansion. Edna and Rock have enlisted the help of a Metro East
legal firm that specializes in Social Security and disability claims. In
the meantime, Rock is still looking for a good deal on a used truck or van
so he can take on odd jobs around Springfield this summer. Unfortunately, Rock isn’t being rewarded for
his perseverance. Since he’s returned to the workforce, he says, the
amount of money he and Edna receive in state and federal government
assistance — including his Social Security benefits — has been
reduced. Rock doesn’t see any other way around working:
“Until something comes up, I don’t have any choice.” SHOP TALK Step into any neighborhood barber or beauty shop on a
Saturday morning and you’d think you’d stumbled onto the set of
a rapid-fire talking-head TV program — or Thanksgiving dinner at the
Cap City household. You name it, they’re shouting about it —
politics, religion, last night’s game-winning play, last
night’s forgettable blind date. Because no topic is off limits, salons are the
perfect venues for disseminating information about personal and community
health, says Ann Locke, health-initiatives coordinator for the Springfield Urban
League. “You have a captive audience,” Locke
says, noting that clients spend anywhere between one and three hours at a
timein the
stylist’s chair. Earlier this month, the Urban League and Illinois
Department of Public Health trained Springfield beauticians and barbers
from a dozen local salons on the basics on cervical and prostate cancer. The most recent data from the IDPH show that in
Sangamon County 718 men have prostate cancer (42,739 statewide) and 38
women have cervical cancer (3,154 in Illinois). Because trust lies at the
center of all stylist-client relationships, Locke says, hair-care
professionals are in a prime position to encourage customers to get
screened. Ora Whiteside, a
Springfield barbershop owner who attended the training, says he eventually
overcame his reluctance to undergo a prostate exam. He’s now offering
a simple — and ironic — bit of advice to his younger colleagues:
“Get off your butts and get tested.”BOYZ WILL BE BOYZ A Springfield business owner — recognized
internationally as a leader in the adult-entertainment industry —
became the target of unsolicited local interest this week thanks to a
heated St. Louis political race. Steve Shay founded and
still owns Citiboyz (www.citiboyz.com), a gay-pornography franchise that
has quietly operated out of a residence in the 2100 block of South Walnut
Street since 1998. But the business no longer is flying under the radar now
that Michael Colona, a St. Louis attorney and Citiboyz’ custodian of records,
has entered the contest for a seat in the Missouri House of
Representatives, and his political opponents are investigating his ties to
porn. Shay wasn’t interested in talking about his
business or the controversy, but he tells Cap City: “It’s
really unfair what they’re trying to do to Mike, and we’re just
going to stay out of it.”As Citiboyz’ custodian of records, Colona
ensures that the company meets state and federal requirements and prohibits
minors from getting access to its material. Colona says his work is a
nonissue, especially because these types of businesses are constitutionally
protected as long as they follow the law. “It shouldn’t be a big deal,”
Colona says. “As an attorney, I believe in the First Amendment, and
the activities these companies are engaging in are legal
activities.”Colona says that Citiboyz treats its employees with
respect and dignity, and he’s disappointed that the Springfield
company was forced into the spotlight. THINGS THAT GO BOOM Was it an act of terrorism? A conspiracy on the part
of the city of Springfield? Nope, says Exponent: The Nov. 10 power plant
explosion was strictly the sum of the plant’s malfunctioning parts. The Maryland-based company, responsible for the
investigation of the grounding of the Exxon Valdez and the bombing of the
Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, released its findings
on the Dallman 31 explosion last week. After months of research, the company found that the
turbine exploded after the two sets of valves — one responsible for
isolating the flow of steam to the turbine and the other responsible for
controlling the flow of steam through the turbine and for regulating
generator output — failed. The heightened acceleration of the turbine
shaft and resulting factors caused a release of hydrogen and then an
explosion in the turbine room. The blast knocked out part of the wall and
then spread fire to adjacent transformers.